Sword in the Stone
The Sword in the Stone is a 1964 American animated musical fantasy comedy film produced by Walt Disney and released to theaters on December 25, 1964 by Buena Vista Distribution. The 18th film in the Walt Disney Animated Classics series, it was the final Disney animated film released before Walt Disney's death. The songs in the film were written and composed by the Sherman Brothers, who later wrote music for other Disney films like Mary Poppins (1965), The Jungle Book (1968), and Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1972). The film is based on the novel of the same name, first published in 1938 as a single novel. It was later republished in 1958 as the first book of T. H. White's tetralogy The Once and Future King. Plot CastEdit * Sebastian Cabot: Sir Ector (voice) * Karl Swenson: Merlin (The Powerful Wizard) (voice)the deurtagonist. * Rickie Sorensen: Arthur (Wart) (voice)the main protagonist of the film. * Junius Matthews: Archimedes the Owl (voice)/Horse (speaking) * Ginny Tyler: Little Girl Squirrel (voice) * Martha Wentworth: Fat Old Lady Squirrel/Madame Mim (voice) the main antagonist of the film. * Norman Alden: Kay (voice) * Barbara Jo Allen: Scullery Maid * Alan Napier: Sir Pelinore (voice) * Thurl Ravenscroft: Sir Bart(voice)/Horse (singing, uncredited) * Tudor Owen Knight at Tournament (voice SongsEdit * "A Most Befuddling Thing" * "Mad Madame Mim" * "That's What Makes the World Go Round" * "Higitus Figitus" * "The Sword in the Stone" Animation Edit * Disney animators Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston said that Milt Kahl's animations of Kay and Sir Ector were "the best human figures ever done at the studio."[citation needed] * The climactic battle between Merlin and Madam Mim is often cited by animation experts as some of the best character animation to that date. The characters go through numerous physical transformations during battle, yet retain their identifying features; Merlin's guises are blue and include his glasses and facial hair, while Madam Mim's are pink and have her messy hair.[citation needed] * Some of the animation cells of Arthur walking through the dark forest to find Kay's arrow were later reused in a similar scene in The Black Cauldron in which Taran looks for Hen-Wen. * When Sir Ector and Kay are in the kitchen fighting against the enchanted dishware, Sir Ector yells and swings his sword so hard that it hits Kay on the head; Jasper and Horace in One Hundred and One Dalmatians are animated in the same way during the fight scene with Pongo and Perdita. * This film is also said to be the last film roles for Martha Wentworth, Tudor Owen, and Barbara Jo Allen Release The Sword in the Stone (video) Worldwide release dates Edit * USA: June 21, 1964 * Japan: July 18, 1964 * Mexico: December 10, 1964 * Sweden: December 14, 1964 * France: December 16, 1964 * West Germany: December 17, 1964 * Italy: December 23, 1964 * Denmark: December 26, 1964 * Norway: December 26, 1964 * Finland: December 17, 1966 * Spain: December 20, 1966 Titles in different languagesEdit * Bosnian: Mač u kamenu * Bulgarian: Мечът в камъка * Chinese: 石中剑 * Croatian: Mač u kamenu * Danish: Sværdet I Stenen * Dutch: Merlijn de Tovenaar * Finnish: Miekka Kivessä * French: Merlin l'Enchanteur * German: Die Hexe und der Zauberer (also known as Merlin und Mim) * Hebrew: החרב באבן * Italian: La Spada Nella Roccia * Japanese: 王様の剣 * Maltese: Ix-Xabla fil-Ġebla * Norwegian: Sverdet I Stenen * Portuguese: A Espada Era a Lei * Polish: Miecz w kamieniu * Romanian: Sabia din Piatră * Russian: Меч в камне * Serbian: Mač u kamenu * Spanish: Merlín el Encantador * Swedish: Svärdet I Stenen * Turkish: Taşa Saplanan Kılıç * Vietnamese: Thanh Gươm Trong Đá The Sword in the Stone 1963-1964 Trailers The Sword in the Stone 1983 Reissue Trailer The Sword in the Stone 1986 Reissue Trailer The Sword in the Stone 1993 Reissue Trailer External linksEdit * The Sword in the Stone at the Internet Movie Database Category:Walt Disney Productions Category:Walt Disney Animation Studios Category:1964 Category:1998 Re-Release Category:Animated films